Book Blurb
Imagine you woke up with the perfect life . . . But it wasn’t yours. Today is Josie’s 36th birthday. Josie is a single British woman living in a tiny walk-up in Brooklyn. She misses her family, but her radio show is starting to go places. And sure, she could be a dress size smaller, but no one cares what you look like on the radio. The guy she’s had a crush on for months is finally going to break up with his girlfriend. She hopes. She’s zipping through traffic on her way to meet her friends for dinner at a SoHo restaurant. There’s a screech of brakes, Josie crashes her bike and her world goes black. Then something extraordinary happens. She wakes up in hospital. The handsome stranger by her side, holding her hand and telling her he loves her, is Rob. Her husband of two years. They live in a chic Manhattan penthouse. She works in real estate. And she’s thirty pounds slimmer than when she got on her bike that morning. Josie has no idea how she got here. This new life is everything she ever wanted. But there’s one very important thing missing . . . And now she has to decide: should she go back to her old single life in Brooklyn or stay with the love of her nearly perfect new life? What would you do?
BLOG TOUR REVIEW
Review for 'The Love Of My Other Life' by CJ Connolly.
Read and reviewed for CJ Connolly, Joffed Books and Zooloo's Book Tours.
Publication date 30th June 2022.
This is CJ Connolly's debut novel.
I was originally drawn to this book by its intriguing cover and its hilarious sounding synopsis and title. The synopsis stated that 'This extraordinary and unforgettable love story is perfect for fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Audrey Niffenegger, Diana Gabaldon, Jojo Moyes, David Nicholls, Colleen Hoover, Laura Barnett, Rebecca Searle and Holly Miller.' I am a huge fan of Jojo Moyes and the so am looking forward to seeing if this lives up to this statement. I must admit I was also biased due to the publisher being Joffe Books. I have yet to read a book published by Joffe Books that I haven't enjoyed. Hopefully this won't be the first... Watch this space! (Written before I started reading the book).
This novel consists of 40 chapters set over three parts. The chapters are short to medium in length so possible to read 'just one more chapter' before bed...OK, I know yeah right, but still just in case!
This book is based in Brooklyn and Manhattan, USA 🇺🇸, Venice, Italy 🇮🇹, London, Cornwall, England 🏴, UK 🇬🇧 and more. The bonus for me of books that are partly or fully based in the UK is that I live in the UK and have sometimes visited places mentioned in the book which makes it easier to picture. I have actually visited both Cornwall and London so am looking forward to seeing if I recognise anywhere mentioned in the book.
This book is written in a mix of third and first person perspective and the protagonist is Josie. The benefits of books written in first person perspective are as long as they are well written it makes you feel that you are being spoken to by the protagonist and it can create more of a bond between yourselves and them. The benefits of third person perspective are that it let's you see the bigger picture of what's going on and you get to know more characters more, what they are thinking and what they are doing. It feels like you get to see the whole picture and not miss out in anything. To have the benefit of both first and third person perspective ensures you don't miss out on anything.
This book is beautifully written and it is hard to believe it is the authors first book!! The descriptions were so vivid I could feel the sand between my toes, see the canals is Venice and hear the rush hour in Brooklyn.
The storyline is definitely unique!! I have never actually come along a book like this before. I will admit that it wasn't what I was expecting. I was expecting something more like Bridget Jones with a lot more humour rather than a multiverse scenario. However, that is not to say that I didn't enjoy it, it just wasn't I expected from the synopsis but it could have been me perceiving it incorrectly. Anyway, on with saying more about the storyline. Although it didn't include the amount of humour I expected I did laugh out loud on several occasions. It is an easy read but also a book that will leave you thinking after about how one moment in time can change a lifetime. I loved that it flipped characters, I don't want to say too much as I don't want to spoil it for future readers, which is also going to make it hard for me to review the characters but I'll cross that road in a moment. This book has so many emotions from laughter to anger, jealousy to grief. C. J Connolly has managed to cram every conceived emotion into one excellent read. I enjoyed this book and it is one that can be read on front of the fire or on the beach as the time line spans a year. I'm pleased that we get to see everything that is going on from both sides and I loved each of the endings. I also adored the fact that you get to visit so many destinations in one book. It felt like going on am absolutely fantastic holiday and I was gutted to come to the end and have to unpack my suitcase.
Well done CJ Connolly on a great first novel and I am looking forward to reading your next one!!!
The characters were all sturdy and realistic. This is where I need to be careful not to say too much so I'll try my best. I had a mix of feelings when it came to Josie and hopefully you will see what I mean. There were times where I liked her and thought she was very friendly and lovely and yet other times where I found her to be hypoctrical, childish and whiny. This normally affects how much I enjoy a book but in this case it didn't for reasons you will realised when you have read the book. Rob seemed a nice enough guy who was romantic and caring yet at other times I do feel he had a jealous and maybe even an aggressive side which wasn't fully revealed. Suzie was a fantastic friend who was there for Josie throughout. I really liked Peter and did think it was a shame about what happened with him. You'll have to read the book yourself to find out more sorry 😂. I loved David who was an amazing brother, so full of life and character!!! I also loved Mike and Hans who were also the life of the party. I'd love to pull these three guys out of the book and have a night out with them!!! Regardless of whether you love or hate them these characters all worked perfectly together for a fantastic read and it would be a very boring life if we loved or hated everyone in it!!!!
Overall a unique and enjoyable read filled with emotions that will take you on a journey around the world.
Genres covered in this book include Urban Fantasy, Romance, Death & Grief, Relationships and Contemporary Romance amongst others.
I would recommend this book to the fans of the above as well as fans of Taylor Jenkins Reid, Audrey Niffenegger, Diana Gabaldon, Jojo Moyes, David Nicholls, Colleen Hoover, Laura Barnett, Rebecca Searle and Holly Miller.
366 pages.
This book is just 99p to purchase or free on kindle unlimited (at time of review) on kindle via Amazon which I think is an absolute bargain for this book!!!
Rated 4/5 (I enjoyed it ) on Goodreads, Instagram, Amazon UK and Amazon US and on over 30 Facebook pages plus my blog on Facebook.
Feel free to add me on Goodreads or follow me on my website or Facebook for more reviews
@CJConnolly @CJConnollybooks @ZooLoosBT @Bookworm1986 @bookworm86 @JoffeBooks
Author Bio
CJ Connolly is a writer based in Vancouver, Canada, but hailing originally from the UK. By day, CJ has a career in communications and journalism, with two decades of editing, writing, and marketing experience in the Vancouver and London media and tech industries.
She has also been the host of a real estate-focused talk radio show and has been seen many times reporting on TV and speaking on conference panels.
In her free time – in addition to writing contemporary romance novels – CJ is passionate about singing, and is a member of a vocal group in Vancouver. Although she is happily child-free, the great loves of CJ's life are her young nephews Oscar and Felix, who live much too far away in Munich, Germany.
Follow her at:
Instagram : https://www.instagram.com/cjconnollybooks/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/cjconnollybooks
Website: https://cjconnollybooks.com
Buy Links
Amazon: https://geni.us/LuYpB
